Some Landowners Prefer Old System Instead Of Equal Share
Some landowners believe public consultations should be conducted before any decision is reached.
There are varying opinions among landowners regarding a review of the lease money distribution.
Some landowners believe public consultations should be conducted before any decision is reached. Joana Qounadovu of Suvavou Village prefers the old lease distribution system, where funds are set aside for the church reverend, vanua, waste rate, and the rest distributed to mataqali members.
Ms Qounadovu believes lease money should be used for the yasana and tikina, and that lease beneficiaries should contribute back to the vanua.
“As an iTaukei we have commitments in the vanua, the church, schools and because of the equal lease distribution only a few actually contribute,” Ms Qounadovu said.
Sailasa Rasala, 57, of Lami Village also prefers the old lease distribution system, where funds were set aside for the Turaga-ni-Mataqali, Turaga-ni-Yavusa, and the rest distributed to individual accounts.
Mr Rasala believes that following the hierarchy structure of iTaukei landowners will be fair and prevents any breakdown.
“I prefer the last lease distribution method instead of the equal lease distribution,” he said.
“It would be fair to have the share of the Turaga-ni-Mataqali, Turaga-ni-Yavusa to be set aside and the rest could go to individual accounts.
“It is good to follow the hierarchy structure of iTaukei landowners. Children nowadays think they are equal to the liuliu-ni-mataqali just because they receive the same amount of money. Something must be done before there is a breakdown in the hierarchy structure of iTaukei landowners,” he said.
Both Ms Qounadovu and Mr Rasala believe the equal lease distribution system has resulted in a lack of contributions to the vanua, the church, and schools while some lease receivers do not care about the needs of the vanua.
They advocate for a system that encourages contributions back to the vanua.